Neo, In the Hebrew Matrix, You Don’t Have a Mind (part 3)

Neo, in the Hebrew Matrix, You Don’t Have a Mind (part 3)

This is part 3 in a three-part series on the “mind” in Hebrew. In part 1, we talked about the differences between the ancient Hebrew oriental culture and our modern Western culture. In part 2, we talked about the concept of “mind” in Western culture and correspondingly, the idea of “mind” in the Hebrew culture. If you haven’t read the first two parts yet, check ‘em out!

Part 3: What it all means for you: Moving from the head to the heart

So great, you say. I got it. In Hebrew thought, the concept of “mind” doesn’t exist, and the heart plays a pretty big role. But what does this all mean for me?

Glad you asked! The fact is, as believers today, we can learn a lot from the ancient Hebrew culture. I already talked about our tendency to over-analyze God; entire schools of Theology are built around super-analyzation (is that a word?). But beyond that, I want to highlight one area that we tend to over-emphasize the mind in place of the heart: the realm of worship.

Now, it’s no secret that the majority of our worship is mind-centered and devoid, at least to a certain extent, of a real heart experience. Wait!, you say. Isn’t that a little extreme? Well, let’s perform a little experiment. Go buy a ticket to your local NFL football game, and compare the intensity level between that and your Sunday morning worship service. I mean when was the last time you saw the parishioners jumping up and down, screaming their heads off like maniacs about their love for God? No, we would rather sing – “I’ve got the joy, joy, joy down in my heart”, and the truth is that it’s a little too far down in our heart – we need to let it out!

Okay, now please don’t be offended. I think calm and tranquil worship times are great. But the fact is, there are quite a few times in our lives when we live from our hearts: in addition to football games, how about winning the lotto (have you ever seen completely normal people turn into absolute nutcases when they get the phone call that $55 million is on the way?), or a less pleasant case: how about when, as you prepare to lower the hammer with considerable force in order to insert that nail into the wall, the hammer head misses the nail and comes into contact with your finger? Now don’t tell me that you utter up a quiet prayer at that moment. The fact is, we all live from the heart – but for some reason, when it comes to the things of God, many of us have a tough time expressing from the heart, and instead give God a piece of our “mind”, which unfortunately, doesn’t even exist – at least not in Hebrew thought.

So what am I saying in all this? I’m saying that we’ve made the “mind” too important in our Western culture. The ancient Hebrews didn’t even have a word for the idea – they were too busy enjoying life from the heart, living, worshipping, and praising God with all that was inside of them. I want to suggest that if we want to have the kind of life that ancient Israel experienced: the presence of God, national revival, and even international influence for the glory of God, we could learn a few things from ‘em: make it all about the heart, and we’ll all be a little less mental.

Until next time!
H.B.

Neo, In the Hebrew Matrix, You Don’t Have a Mind (part 1)

No, this isn’t a secret blooper scene from The Matrix 4. In the Hebrew world of the Bible, you don’t have a mind. Okay, I know what you’re thinking: this guy is nuts. He’s lost it. One too many trips to the Western Wall. Actually, we’re talking about a powerful truth that has the potential to deepen your relationship with God in ways you never imagined.

First, however, I need to explain. What I said above was not exactly, well, exact. The truth is that there is no single word in the Hebrew language that means “mind”. There are many words that touch on various aspects of the mind, but the actual word is just not there. This isn’t just a missing entry in the dictionary: this reflects a whole different culture and way of thinking. We’re going to talk about this phenomenon and what it means for you in this three-part series on the mind in Hebrew.

Part 1: The Hebrew Culture: This isn’t Kansas, Toto

The ancient Hebrew culture was very different than our modern Western culture. Many of you probably know that most of the people were farmers, living in agricultural-based communities. They fought bloody battles and life was, umm different (in other words, they didn’t have modern toilets). But did you know that the ancient Hebrew culture was actually oriental?

That’s right, I said oriental. Like Chinese. Like Japanese. Like Pad Thai. Okay maybe they didn’t eat Pad Thai. But the ancient Hebrews lived in the east (that’s where the “East” in Middle East came from) and as such, they were very connected to the overall oriental style of life: deep connections to the land, high degree of honor and respect in the family, and a picture-based language. Picture-based language you say? Yes, Hebrew was originally written with pictographs, similar to ancient Chinese (see below).

For example, let’s talk about honor and respect. All of us are probably familiar with the eastern concept of “honor”: in traditional eastern cultures (China, Japan, etc.), it is considered extremely improper for children to correct their parents, even if the children are right. Now take a look at Deut. 21:18-21: God commanded the ancient Israelites to kill their rebellious children. How’s that for a culture of honor and respect? And if you’re not convinced yet, all throughout the Bible there are references to nature and the earth (i.e. Ps. 1) – another oriental concept.

Now let's talk about the Hebrew language. Hebrew was originally written with pictures (like ancient Chinese). Jeff Benner has a great book called the “Ancient Hebrew Lexicon” that explains this in-depth and provides definitions to Hebrew words according to their ancient word picture. For example: the word “father” is made up of two pictures: the picture of a house and the head of an ox. The ox’s head symbolized strength, giving the picture of “father” as “strength of the house”.

The net effect is that when you looked an ancient Hebrew word, you didn’t just understand the word, you “saw” it. You didn’t just have a mental experience, you received a revelation in your heart as you took in the word picture. We’ll be talking more about that in part 3.

In summary, the ancient oriental Hebrew culture was very different than our modern Western culture. In many ways, the ancient Hebrews understood the Bible differently than we do today. One example is the word “mind”: it doesn’t exist in Hebrew, and in the rest of this series, we’re going to ask why – and what it means for you in your walk with God.

Till next time!
H.B.

HebrewNuggets: Lights, Camera, Action!

OK, so this is my first blog post in the new HebrewNuggets blog. What are HebrewNuggets? They are little cool tidbits about the Bible (Old and New Testament) that you can only see if you know a little Hebrew. Hebrew you say? Yes, Hebrew. The Old Testament was originally written in Hebrew, and although we don't know what language the New Testament was written in, there's a good chance that Jesus spoke or at least thought in Hebrew. Bottom line: there are a lot of very cool things about the Bible that you discover when you look at it in Hebrew. This blog is here to tell you about ‘em!

A little about me: My name is H.B. Nugget. No, that's not my real name. Why the pseudonym you ask? Well if I told you, I'd have to......just kidding. Yes, I live in Israel and speak, read, and write Hebrew. I'm also a believer in Yeshua (Jesus), so when I say Bible, I mean the whole thing (both the Old and New Testaments). I invite you to post comments, let me know what you think! And pass the word on to your friends, family, and yes, even your neighbor's hamster. Everyone deserves to know about this blog!!! (ok I am shamelessly pulling for a higher Google rating, but you get the picture).

See ya for now,
H.B.